head

en-noun

head (countable and uncountable, plural heads or head)

heads (plural)
head (plural)
heed (alternative obsolete)
hed (alternative obsolete)
'ead (alternative UK pronunciation-spelling)

→ Japanese: ヘッド (heddo)

Sranan Tongo: ede

Aukan: ede

Saramaccan: hédi

Etymology tree
Proto-Indo-European *kap-
Proto-Indo-European *káput-
Proto-Germanic *haubudą
Old English hēafod
Middle English heed
English head
From Middle English hed, from Old English hēafd-, hēafod (“head; top; chief”), from Proto-West Germanic *haubud, from Proto-Germanic *haubudą (“head”), from Proto-Indo-European *káput.
The modern word comes from Old English oblique stem hēafd-, the expected Modern English outcome for hēafod would be *heaved (similar to the Middle English word). Doublet of cape, capo, caput, chef, chief, and Howth.
Cognate with Scots heid, hede, hevid, heved (“head”), Old English hafola (“head”), North Frisian hood (“head”), Dutch hoofd (“head”), German Haupt (“head”), Swedish huvud (“head”), Danish hoved (“head”), Icelandic höfuð (“head”), Latin caput (“head”), Sanskrit कपाल (kapāla, “skull”), Hindi कपाल (kapāl, “skull”).

頭

つぶり, tsuburi, つぃぶる, tsiburu, つぃぶるぃ, tsiburi

pää

principal operative part of a machine or tool

have one's head screwed on the right way

know one's head from a hole in the ground

run around like a chicken with its head cut off

would lose one's head if it wasn't attached

would lose one's head if it wasn't bolted on

would lose one's head if it wasn't glued on

would lose one's head if it wasn't screwed on

would lose one's head if it wasn't stuck on

would lose one's head if it wasn't tied on

would lose one's head if it weren't attached

you can't put an old head on young shoulders

you can't put a wise head on young shoulders

(countable) The topmost, foremost, or leading part.

(billiards) The end of a pool table opposite the end where the balls have been racked.


love

Now widely believed (due to historical written record) to be from the idea that when one does a thing “for love” it is for no monetary gain, the word “love” thus implying "nothing".
The former assumption that it had originated from French l’œuf (literally “the egg”), due to its shape, has largely been discredited and is no longer widely accepted. However, the apparent similarity of the shape of an egg to a zero has inspired similar analogies, such as the use of duck (reputed to be short for duck's egg) for a zero score at cricket, and goose egg for "zero".

loue (alternative obsolete)
luv (alternative)

So that’s fifteen-love to Kournikova.

The next day Agassi came back from two sets to love down to beat Courier in five sets.

2013, Paul McNamee, Game Changer: My Tennis Life:

(racquet sports, billiards) Zero, no score.


black

en-noun

black (countable and uncountable, plural blacks)

blacks (plural)
blacke (alternative obsolete)
Black (alternative)
blk (alternative)
blak (alternative)

→ Japanese: ブラック (burakku)

→ Volapük: bläg

From Middle English blak, black, blake, from Old English blæc (“black, dark", also "ink”), from Proto-West Germanic *blak, from Proto-Germanic *blakaz (“burnt”) (compare Dutch blaken (“to burn”), Low German blak, black (“blackness, black paint, (black) ink”), Old High German blah (“black”)), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *bʰleg- (“to burn, shine”) (compare Latin flagrāre (“to burn”), Ancient Greek φλόξ (phlóx, “flame”), Sanskrit भर्ग (bharga, “radiance”)).
Sense 20 is a semantic loan from Cantonese 黑面 (hak1 min6, “to pull a long face, to scowl”).

sl

(countable, billiards, snooker, pool) The black ball.


white

en-noun

white (countable and uncountable, plural whites)

whites (plural)
whight (alternative obsolete)
whyte (alternative obsolete)
whyght (alternative obsolete)
White (alternative)

Inherited from Middle English whit, hwit, from Old English hwīt, from Proto-West Germanic *hwīt, from Proto-Germanic *hwītaz, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱweydós, a byform of *ḱweytós (“bright; shine”).
Cognates
* West Frisian wyt
*Dutch wit
* German weiß
* German weiss
* Norwegian Bokmål hvit
* Norwegian Nynorsk kvit
* Lithuanian šviẽsti (“to gleam”), šviesa (“light”)
* Old Church Slavonic свѣтъ (světŭ, “light”), свѣтьлъ (světĭlŭ, “clear, bright”)
* Persian سفید (sefid, “white”), Persian سپید (sepid, “white”)
* Avestan 𐬯𐬞𐬀𐬉𐬙𐬀 (spaēta, “white”)
* Sanskrit श्वेत (śvetá, “white, bright”).

bělásek

common name for butterflies in the subfamily Pierinae

(countable) Any object or substance that is of the color white.

(sports, billiards, snooker, pool) The cue ball in cue games.


draw

en-verb

draw (third-person singular simple present draws, present participle drawing, simple past drew, past participle drawn or (colloquial and nonstandard) drew)

draws (present singular third-person)
drawing (participle present)
drew (past)
drawn (participle past)
drew (colloquial nonstandard participle past)
draw (infinitive)
draw (first-person present singular)
drew (first-person past singular)
draw (present second-person singular)
drawest (archaic present second-person singular)
drew (past second-person singular)
drewest (archaic past second-person singular)
draws (present singular third-person)
draweth (archaic present singular third-person)
drew (past singular third-person)
draw (plural present)
drew (past plural)
draw (present subjunctive)
drew (past subjunctive)
draw (imperative present)
drawing (participle present)
drawn (participle past)

The verb is derived from Middle English drauen, drawen, draȝen, dragen (“to drag, pull; to draw (out); to attract; to entice, lure; to lead; to make a drawing; to move, travel; etc.”), from Old English dragan (“to drag, draw”), from Proto-West Germanic *dragan (“to carry; to haul”), from Proto-Germanic *draganą (“to carry; to pull, draw”); further etymology uncertain, often said to be from Proto-Indo-European *dʰregʰ- (“to pull, draw”), but possibly from a non-Indo-European substrate root which is also the source of Latin trahō (“to pull, draw; etc.”). Doublet of drag and draught.
The noun is derived from Middle English drau, draue (“action of shooting with a bow”), from drauen, drawen (verb).
cognates
* Albanian dredh (“to turn, spin”)
* Danish drage
* Dutch dragen
* German tragen (“to carry”)
* Old Armenian դառնամ (daṙnam, “to turn”)
* Sanskrit ध्रजस् (dhrájas, “gliding course or motion”)
* West Frisian drage

vyluhovávat

of drinks: to leave temporarily so as to allow the flavour to increase

изтеглям

cardgames: to take the top card of a deck into hand

every miller draws water to his own mill

one hair of a woman can draw more than a hundred pair of oxen

Senses relating to exerting force or pulling.

(billiards) To strike (the cue ball) below the centre so as to give it a backward rotation which causes it to move backwards on striking another ball.


foot

en-noun

foot (plural feet or (UK colloquial, unit of measure) foot)

feet (plural)
foot (plural)
foote (alternative obsolete)
feets (alternative dialectal)
foots (alternative nonstandard)

→ Assamese: ফুট (phut)

q

from <i class="Latn mention" lang="en">feet</i>

→ Japanese: フット (futto), フート (fūto); フィート (fīto) (from feet)

→ Russian: фут (fut)

Sranan Tongo: futu

Aukan: futu

Saramaccan: fútu

→ Swahili: futi

→ Thai: ฟุต (fút)

Tok Pisin: fut, put

→ Urdu: فٹ (fuṭ)

→ Phalura: fuṭ

From Middle English fot, fote, foot, from Old English fōt, from Proto-West Germanic *fōt, from Proto-Germanic *fōts, from Proto-Indo-European *pṓds. Doublet of pes, pie (“Spanish unit of length”), and pous.

doublet

not touch something with a ten-foot pole

you cannot put the same shoe on every foot

(billiards) The end of a billiard or pool table behind the foot point where the balls are racked.


nurse

en-verb

nurse (third-person singular simple present nurses, present participle nursing, simple past and past participle nursed)

nurses (present singular third-person)
nursing (participle present)
nursed (participle past)
nursed (past)
norice (alternative obsolete)
nourice (alternative obsolete)
nourse (alternative obsolete)

From Middle English norice, from Old French norrice, from Late Latin nūtrīcia, noun based on Latin nūtrīcius (“that which nourishes”), from nūtrīx (“wet nurse”), from nūtriō (“to suckle”).

der

It is to our interest to let Lee and Johnston come together, just as a billiard-player would nurse the balls when he has them in a nice place

1866, United States. Congress. Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War, Supplemental report of the Joint Committee:

(transitive, billiards) To strike (billiard balls) gently, so as to keep them in good position during a series of shots.


break

en-verb

break (third-person singular simple present breaks, present participle breaking, simple past broke or (archaic) brake, past participle broken or (nonstandard) broke)

breaks (present singular third-person)
breaking (participle present)
broke (past)
brake (archaic past)
broken (participle past)
broke (nonstandard participle past)
break (infinitive)
break (first-person present singular)
broke (first-person past singular)
break (present second-person singular)
breakest (archaic present second-person singular)
broke (past second-person singular)
brokest (archaic past second-person singular)
breaks (present singular third-person)
breaketh (archaic present singular third-person)
broke (past singular third-person)
break (plural present)
broke (past plural)
break (present subjunctive)
broke (past subjunctive)
break (imperative present)
breaking (participle present)
broken (participle past)

From Middle English breken, from Old English brecan (“to break”), from Proto-West Germanic *brekan, from Proto-Germanic *brekaną (“to break”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰreg- (“to break”). The word is a doublet of bray.
Cognates
Cognates of Germanic origin include Scots brek (“to break”), West Frisian brekke (“to break”), Dutch breken (“to break”), Low German breken (“to break”), German brechen (“to break”), French broyer (“to crush, grind”), Gothic 𐌱𐍂𐌹𐌺𐌰𐌽 (brikan, “to break, destroy”), Norwegian brek (“desire, yearning”).
Also cognate with Albanian brishtë (“fragile”), Latin frangō (“break, break up, shatter”, verb), whence English fracture and other terms – fragile, frail, fraction, and fragment.

breek

intransitive: to separate into (to end up in) two or more pieces

thyen

transitive: to separate into (to cause to end up in) two or more pieces

sındırmaq

to cause a person to lose spirit or will

խախտել

transitive: to do that which is forbidden by (something)

փչանալ

intransitive: to stop functioning properly or altogether

ջարդել

transitive: to cause to stop functioning

burst

ergative: separate into two or more pieces

contravene

transitive: do that which is forbidden by

break one's arm patting oneself on the back

you can't make an omelette without breaking eggs

Is it your or my turn to break?

(intransitive, billiards, snooker, pool) To make the first shot; to scatter the balls from the initial neat arrangement.


break

(billiards, snooker, pool) The first shot in a game of billiards.


leave

From Middle English leven, from Old English lǣfan (“to leave”), from Proto-West Germanic *laibijan, from Proto-Germanic *laibijaną (“to let stay, leave”), causative of *lībaną (“to stay, remain”), from Proto-Indo-European *leyp- (“to stick; fat”).
Cognate with Old Frisian lēva (“to leave”), Old Saxon lēvian, Old High German leiban (“to leave”), Old Norse leifa (“to leave over”) (whence Icelandic leifa (“to leave food uneaten”)), lifna (“to be left”) (whence Danish levne). More at lave, belive.
The noun is attested since the 19th century, with earliest references to billiards.

cog

Having counted 38 points he tried a beautiful massé out of the corner, hit the first ball just a trifle too hard and kissed his own ball off just when victory seemed to be his. The leave was unfortunate for Ives. Slosson played brilliantly and ran the game out, a close winner, with 22 points.

1890 February 27, “Slosson’s Close Shave”, in New York Times:

(billiards) The arrangement of balls in play that remains after a shot is made (which determines whether the next shooter — who may be either the same player, or an opponent — has good options, or only poor ones).


bridge

bridges (plural)
bridg (alternative obsolete)
brigge (alternative)

From Middle English brigge, from Old English brycġ (“bridge”), from Proto-Germanic *brugjō, *brugjǭ (“bridge”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰerw-, *bʰrēw- (“wooden flooring, decking, bridge”).
Cognate with Scots brig, brigg, breeg (“bridge”), Saterland Frisian Brääch (“bridge”), West Frisian brêge (“bridge”), Dutch brug (“bridge”), German Brücke (“bridge”), Danish brygge (“wharf”), Icelandic brygga (“pier”), Gaulish briua (“bridge”).
The verb is from Middle English briggen, from Old English brycġian (“to bridge, make a causeway, pave”), derived from the noun. Cognate with Dutch bruggen (“to bridge”), Middle Low German bruggen (“to bridge”), Old High German bruccōn (“to bridge”) (whence Modern German brücken).
The musical connection sense is a semantic loan from German Steg, from Old High German steg.

ацҳа

construction or natural feature that spans a divide

if someone told you to jump off a bridge, would you do it

(billiards, snooker, pool) A particular form of one hand placed on the table to support the cue when making a shot in cue sports.

(billiards, snooker, pool) A cue modified with a convex arch-shaped notched head attached to the narrow end, used to support a player's (shooter's) cue for extended or tedious shots. Also called a spider.


string

en-noun

string (countable and uncountable, plural strings)

Tok Pisin: string

→ Dutch: string

→ Finnish: stringit

→ French: string

→ German: String

desc

מחרוז//מַחְרֹזֶת

→ Hebrew: מחרוז /מַחְרֹזֶת (makhrózet) (semantic loan)

→ Japanese: ストリング (sutoringu)

→ Norwegian Bokmål: streng (semantic loan)

→ Norwegian Nynorsk: streng (semantic loan)

→ Polish: stringi

→ Portuguese: estrém; string

→ Swedish: string

From Middle English string, streng, strynge, from Old English strenġ, from Proto-West Germanic *strangi, from Proto-Germanic *strangiz (“string”), from Proto-Indo-European *strengʰ- (“rope, cord, strand; to tighten”).
Cognate with Scots string (“string”), Dutch streng (“cord, strand”), Low German strenge (“strand, cord, rope”), German Strang (“strand, cord, rope”), Danish streng (“string”), Swedish sträng (“string, cord, wire”), Icelandic strengur (“string”), Latvian stringt (“to be tight, wither”), Latin stringō (“I tighten”), Ancient Greek στραγγαλόομαι (strangalóomai, “to strangle”), from στραγγάλη (strangálē, “halter”), Ancient Greek στραγγός (strangós, “tied together, entangled, twisted”).

cog

στραγγαλόομαι

弦

any similar long, thin and flexible object

弓弦

ゆづる, yuzuru, ゆみづる, yumizuru, ゆんづる, yunzuru

(billiards) Part of the game of billiards, where the order of the play is determined by testing who can get a ball closest to the bottom rail by shooting it onto the end rail.

(historical, billiards) The buttons strung on a wire by which the score is kept.

(billiards, by extension) The points made in a game of billiards.

(billiards, pool) The line from behind and over which the cue ball must be played after being out of play, as by being pocketed or knocked off the table; also called the string line.


string

en-verb

string (third-person singular simple present strings, present participle stringing, simple past strung or (colloquial) stringed or strang, past participle strung or (colloquial) stringed)

strings (present singular third-person)
stringing (participle present)
strung (past)
stringed (colloquial past)
strang (past)
strung (participle past)
stringed (colloquial participle past)

From Middle English stryngen, strengen, from the noun (see above).

(intransitive, billiards) To drive the ball against the end of the table and back, in order to determine which player is to open the game.


cushion

en-noun

cushion (countable and uncountable, plural cushions)

→ Cantonese: 咕𠱸 (ku1 seon2), 箍臣

→ Irish: cúisín

→ Japanese: クッション (kusshon)

→ Korean: 쿠션 (kusyeon)

→ Maori: kuihana

From Middle English quysshyn, from later Old French coissin (modern coussin), from Vulgar Latin *coxīnus (“seat pad”), derived from Latin coxa (“hip, thigh”) (with the suffix possibly after Latin pulvīnus (“pillow”)), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *koḱs- (“joint, limb”).

der

Something acting as a cushion, especially to absorb a shock or impact.

(sports, billiards, snooker, pool) The lip around a table in cue sports which absorbs some of the impact of the billiard balls and bounces them back.


wire

en-noun

wire (countable and uncountable, plural wires)

→ Gulf Arabic: واير (wāyir)

→ Norwegian Bokmål: vaier, wire

→ Norwegian Nynorsk: vaier, wire

→ Swedish: vajer, wire

From Middle English wir, wyr, from Old English wīr (“wire, metal thread, wire-ornament”), from Proto-Germanic *wīraz (“wire”), from Proto-Indo-European *weh₁iros (“a twist, thread, cord, wire”), from *weh₁y- (“to turn, twist, weave, plait”).

score string

object used to keep the score in billiards

(billiards) A wire strung with beads and hung horizontally above or near the table which is used to keep score.


massé

(billiards, snooker) A stroke made with the cue held vertically that causes a billiard ball to move in an arc.


drag

en-noun

drag (countable and uncountable, plural drags)

From Middle English draggen (“to drag”), early Middle English dragen (“to draw, carry”), confluence of Old English dragan (“to drag, draw, draw oneself, go, protract”) and Old Norse draga (“to draw, attract”); both from Proto-Germanic *draganą (“to draw, drag”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰregʰ- (“to draw, drag”).
Verb sense influenced due to association with the noun drag (“that which is hauled or dragged”), related to Low German dragge (“a drag-anchor, grapnel”). Cognate with Danish drægge (“to dredge”), Danish drage (“to draw, attract”), Swedish dragga (“to drag, drag anchor, sweep”), Swedish draga (“to draw, go”), Icelandic draga (“to drag, pull”). Doublet of draw.

cog

(billiards) A push somewhat under the centre of the cue ball, causing it to follow the object ball a short way.


spider

en-noun

spider (countable and uncountable, plural spiders)

[ˈspʌɪ̯ɾə(ɹ)]

From Middle English spiþre, spydyr, spider, spiþer, from Old English spīþra (“spider”), from Proto-West Germanic *spinþrijō, from Proto-Germanic *spinnaną (“to spin”). Mostly displaced attercop (“spider, unpleasant person”), now a dialectal term.

(snooker, billiards) A stick with a convex arch-shaped notched head used to support the cue when the cue ball is out of reach at normal extension.


feather

en-verb

feather (third-person singular simple present feathers, present participle feathering, simple past and past participle feathered)

feathers (present singular third-person)
feathering (participle present)
feathered (participle past)
feathered (past)
fether (alternative archaic)

From Middle English feþer, from Old English feþer, from Proto-West Germanic *feþru, from Proto-Germanic *feþrō, from Proto-Indo-European *péth₂r̥ (“feather, wing”), from *peth₂- (“to fly”).
See also West Frisian fear, German Low German Fedder, Dutch veder, veer, German Feder, Yiddish פֿעדער (feder), Danish fjer, Swedish fjäder, Icelandic fjöður, Faroese fjøður, Norwegian Bokmål fjær, fjør, Norwegian Nynorsk fjør. Also Ancient Greek πέτομαι (pétomai), Albanian shpend (“bird”), Latin penna, Old Armenian թիռ (tʻiṙ).

inh

(snooker, billiards) To move the cue back and forth along the bridge in preparation for striking the cue ball.

(snooker, billiards) To accidentally touch the cue ball with the tip of the cue when taking aim.


pot

en-verb

pot (third-person singular simple present pots, present participle potting, simple past and past participle potted)

pots (present singular third-person)
potting (participle present)
potted (participle past)
potted (past)

From Middle English pot, potte, from Old English pott (“pot”) and Old French pot (“pot”) (probably from Frankish *pott); both Old English and Frankish from Proto-Germanic *puttaz (“pot”), from Proto-Indo-European *budnós (“a type of vessel”).
Cognate with Saterland Frisian Pot (“pot”), Dutch pot (“pot”), German Low German Pott (“pot”), German Pott (“pot”), Swedish potta (“chamber pot”), Icelandic pottur (“tub, pot”), Old Armenian պոյտն (poytn, “pot, earthen pot”). Also, Old Norse pottr (“pot, tub, basin”).
The sense of ruin or deterioration was originally a general allusion to "being chopped up and tossed in a (normally fiery) pot, like a piece of meat" (i.e. to get wasted or done with (by someone)). The 'clean' slang term which was used in reference to toilet rooms and lavatories apparently derives from English chamberpots, although now usually encountered as potty in the context of children's toilet training.

cog

(snooker, pool, billiards, transitive) To cause a ball to fall into a pocket.

The black ball doesn't pot; the red is in the way.

(snooker, pool, billiards, intransitive) To be capable of being potted.


screw

From Middle English screw, scrue (“screw”); apparently, despite the difference in meaning, from Old French escroue (“nut, cylindrical socket, screwhole”), from Latin scrōfa (“female pig”) through comparison with the corkscrew shape of a pig's penis. There is also the Old French escruve (“screw”), from Old Dutch *scrūva ("screw"; whence Middle Dutch schruyve (“screw”)), which probably influenced or conflated with the aforementioned, resulting in the Middle English word.
more on the etymology of screw
Old French escroue (whence Medieval Latin scrofa (“nut, screwhole”)), is believed to be an adaptation of Latin scrōfa (“sow, female pig”); but this development is not found in other Romance languages. (For change in meaning, compare also Spanish puerca, Portuguese porca, both ‘sow; screw nut’, and is based on the fact that a boar's penis has a screw-like tip, making the sow's vulva equivalent to a screw nut by analogy).
Old Dutch *scrūva possibly derives from Proto-Germanic *skrūbō (“screw”), from *skru- (“to cut”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)keru-, *(s)ker- (“to cut”), and is related to German Schraube (“screw”), Low German schruve, schruwe (“screw”), Dutch schroef (“screw”), West Frisian skroef (“screw”), Danish skrue (“screw”), Swedish skruv (“screw, peg”), Icelandic skrúfa (“screw”).
Compare also Occitan escrofa (“screw nut”), Calabrese scrufina (“screw nut”), which may be borrowings of the Old French word, or parallel developments.

gloss

"screw"; whence Middle Dutch <i class="Latn mention" lang="dum">schruyve</i> (“screw”)

cog

the first turn of the screw pays all debts


screw

en-verb

screw (third-person singular simple present screws, present participle screwing, simple past screwed, past participle screwed or (rare, nonstandard) screwn)

screws (present singular third-person)
screwing (participle present)
screwed (past)
screwed (participle past)
screwn (nonstandard participle past rare)

have one's head screwed on the right way

(billiards, snooker, pool) To screw back.


side

en-noun

side (countable and uncountable, plural sides)

From Middle English side, from Old English sīde (“side, flank”), from Proto-Germanic *sīdǭ (“side, flank, edge, shore”), from Proto-Indo-European *sēy- (“to send, throw, drop, sow, deposit”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Siede (“side”), West Frisian side (“side”), Dutch zijde, zij (“side”), German Low German Sied (“side”), German Seite (“side”), Danish and Norwegian side (“side”), Swedish sida (“side”).
The LGBTQ slang sense was coined by sex therapist and author Joe Kort in 2010 and popularized in 2013. The sense was coined by analogy with top and bottom and based on the metaphor of a box which has a top, bottom, and sides.

coinage

know which side one's bread is buttered on

laugh out of the other side of one's mouth

not be able to hit the broad side of a barn

the apples on the other side of the wall are the sweetest

the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence

the grass is always greener on the other side of the road

He had to put a bit of side on to hit the pink ball.

(sports, billiards, snooker, pool) Sidespin; english


mast

From French masse, with -t probably after Etymology 1, above.

Godfrey thus conquered, pretended to lose his temper, curs'd his own ill luck, swore that the table had a cast, and that the balls did not run true, changed his mast, and with great warmth challenged his enemy to double his sum.

1751, [Tobias] Smollett, The Adventures of Peregrine Pickle […], volume (please specify |volume=I to IV), London: Harrison and Co., […], →OCLC:

(obsolete, billiards) A type of heavy cue, with the broad end of which one strikes the ball.


double

PIE word
 *dwóh₁
From Middle English double, from Old French doble, double, from Latin duplus (“twofold”). Doublet of doppio and duple.

Brecel fired in doubles, a succession of stunning long pots and seemingly cleared balls at will as he rattled through the first four frames in under an hour.

2023 May 1, Steve Sutcliffe, “World Snooker Championship 2023 final: Luca Brecel beats Mark Selby for first world title”, in BBC Sport:

(billiards, snooker) A strike in which the object ball is struck so as to make it rebound against the cushion to an opposite pocket.


double

en-verb

double (third-person singular simple present doubles, present participle doubling, simple past and past participle doubled)

doubles (present singular third-person)
doubling (participle present)
doubled (participle past)
doubled (past)

(billiards, snooker, pool) To cause (a ball) to rebound from a cushion before entering the pocket.


cannon

en-noun

cannon (countable and uncountable, plural cannons or (mainly UK) cannon)

cannons (plural)
cannon (UK mainly plural)

Attested from around 1400 as Middle English canon, canoun, from Old French canon, from Italian cannone, from Latin canna, from Ancient Greek κάννα (kánna, “reed”), from Akkadian 𒄀 (qanû, “reed”), from Sumerian 𒄀𒈾 (gi.na). Doublet of canyon. This spelling was not fixed until about 1800.

In English billiards, a cannon is when one’s cue ball strikes the other player’s cue ball and the red ball on the same shot; and it is worth two points.

(sports, billiards, snooker, pool) A carom.


cannon

en-verb

cannon (third-person singular simple present cannons, present participle cannoning, simple past and past participle cannoned)

cannons (present singular third-person)
cannoning (participle present)
cannoned (participle past)
cannoned (past)

The white cannoned off the red onto the pink.

(sports, billiards, snooker, pool) To play the carom billiard shot; to strike two balls with the cue ball.


spot

spot (third-person singular simple present spots, present participle spotting, simple past and past participle spotted)

spots (present singular third-person)
spotting (participle present)
spotted (participle past)
spotted (past)

From Middle English spot, spotte, partially from Middle Dutch spotte (“spot, speck”), and partially merging with Middle English splot, from Old English splott (“spot, plot of land”), from Proto-West Germanic *splott, from Proto-Germanic *spluttaz (“segment”), from Proto-Indo-European *splt-no- (“an off-split, segment”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)pel- (“to split”). Cognate with North Frisian spot (“speck, piece of ground”), Low German spot (“speck”), Old Norse spotti (“small piece”). See also splot, splotch.

cog

The referee had to spot the pink on the blue spot.

(transitive, chiefly snooker and billiards) To place (an object) at a location indicated by a spot.

The black ball won't spot – the green is in the way.

(intransitive, snooker and billiards) Of a ball, to be capable of being placed on its own spot.


inning

→ Japanese: イニング (iningu)

→ Korean: 이닝 (ining)

Back-formation from innings, mistaken to be plural of the time period, not the entries of the batters/batsmen.

(billiards) A player (or team)'s turn at the table to make shots until ended by a miss or a foul.


combination

en-noun

combination (countable and uncountable, plural combinations)

→ Japanese: コンビネーション (konbinēshon)

PIE word
 *dwóh₁
From Middle English combinacioun, combynacyoun, from Old French combination, from Late Latin combīnātiō.
Morphologically combine + -ation

(billiards) A shot where the cue ball hits a ball that strikes another ball on the table.


fine

en-adv

fine (comparative more fine, superlative most fine)

more fine (comparative)
most fine (superlative)

From Middle English fin, fyn, from Old French fin (“fine, minute, exact”), of obscure origin, but probably derived from Latin fīnīre (“to finish”) or fīnis (“boundary, limit, end”), with an abstract sense of fine or thin also arising in many Romance languages (compare Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian fino). Doublet of fino.

(pool, billiards) In a manner so that the driven ball strikes the object ball so far to one side as to be barely deflected, the object ball being driven to one side.


nursery

en-noun

nursery (countable and uncountable, plural nurseries)

Carolina Stanley
Fritz von Uhde
Kunsthalle Hamburg
María Eugenia Vidal

From Middle English noricerie, norserye (“children's nursery; state of being fostered or nursed; education, upbringing”) [and other forms], from Old French norricerie, nourricerie, from norrice, nourrice (modern French nourrice (“childminder, nanny; wet nurse”)) + -erie (suffix forming feminine nouns). Norrice and nourrice are derived from Late Latin nūtrīcia (“wet nurse”), from Latin nūtrīcius (“that nurses or suckles; nourishing”), from nūtriō (“to breastfeed, nurse, suckle”), possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)neh₂- (“to flow”). The English word may be analysed as nourice, nurse + -ery (suffix forming nouns meaning ‘place of’).

refn

From the collection of the Kunsthalle Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany.

nb...

norceri, norcerie, norcery, norcerye, norisri, norisrie, norisserie, norisserye, norserie, norserye, norsheri, norshery, norysrye, nursery

де́тска я́сла

place where nursing or the raising of children is carried out

разса́дник

place where anything is fostered and growth promoted

(countable, billiards) Short for nursery cannon (“a carom shot involving balls that are very close together”).


pocket

→ Japanese: ポケット

→ Welsh: poced

From Middle English pocket (“bag, sack”), from Anglo-Norman poket, Old Northern French poquet, poquete, diminutive of poque, poke (“bag, sack”) (compare modern Norman pouquette and modern French pochette from Old French pochete, from puche), from Frankish *pokō (“pouch”), from Proto-Germanic *pukkô, *pukô (“bag; pouch”), from Proto-Indo-European *bew- (“to blow, swell”). Equivalent to poke + -et. Doublet of pochette. Cognate with Middle Dutch poke, Alemannic German Pfoch (“purse, bag”), Old English pocca, pohha (“poke, pouch, pocket, bag”), Old Norse poki (“bag, pocket”). Compare the related poke (“sack or bag”). See also Modern French pochette and Latin bucca.

der

is that a gun in your pocket or are you just pleased to see me

(sports, billiards, pool, snooker) An indention and cavity with a net sack or similar structure (into which the balls are to be struck) at each corner and one centered on each side of a pool or snooker table.

գնդապարկ

billiards: net into which balls are struck


pocket

en-verb

pocket (third-person singular simple present pockets, present participle pocketing or pocketting, simple past and past participle pocketed or pocketted)

pockets (present singular third-person)
pocketing (participle present)
pocketting (participle present)
pocketed (participle past)
pocketed (past)
pocketted (participle past)
pocketted (past)

(billiards, snooker, pool) To cause a ball to go into one of the pockets of the table; to complete a shot.

вкарвам

to cause a ball to go into a pocket of a billiard table


rack

From Middle English rakke, rekke, from Middle Dutch rac, recke, rec (Dutch rek), see rekken.

(billiards, snooker) A hollow triangle used for aligning the balls at the start of a game.


rack

rack (third-person singular simple present racks, present participle racking, simple past and past participle racked)

racks (present singular third-person)
racking (participle present)
racked (participle past)
racked (past)
rack (infinitive)
rack (first-person present singular)
racked (first-person past singular)
rack (present second-person singular)
rackest (archaic present second-person singular)
racked (past second-person singular)
rackedst (archaic past second-person singular)
racks (present singular third-person)
racketh (archaic present singular third-person)
racked (past singular third-person)
rack (plural present)
racked (past plural)
rack (present subjunctive)
racked (past subjunctive)
rack (imperative present)
racking (participle present)
racked (participle past)

From Old English reċċan (“to stretch out, extend”).

inh

(billiards, snooker, pool) To put the balls into the triangular rack and set them in place on the table.


knuckle

From Middle English knokel (“finger joint”), from Old English cnucel (“the juncture of two bones; knuckle; joint”), from Proto-West Germanic *knukil, from Proto-Germanic *knukilaz (“knuckle, knot, bump”), as *knukô (“bone, joint”) + *-ilaz (diminutive suffix). Cognate with Dutch knokkel (“knuckle”), Low German Knökel (“knuckle”), German Knöchel (“ankle, knuckle”), Old Norse knykill.

affix

сугло́б па́льця m (suhlób pálʹcja, literally “joint of the finger”)

(sports, billiards, snooker, pool) The curved part of the cushion at the entrance to the pockets on a cue sports table.


hazard

en-noun

hazard (countable and uncountable, plural hazards)

From Middle English hasard, from Old French hasart (“a game of dice”) (noun), hasarder (verb), from Arabic اَلزَّهْر (az-zahr, “the dice”). Compare Spanish azar, Portuguese azar.

(billiards) The act of potting a ball, whether the object ball (winning hazard) or the player's ball (losing hazard).


balk

From Middle English balke, from Old English balca, either from or influenced by Old Norse bálkr (“partition, ridge of land”), from Proto-Germanic *balkô. Cognate with Dutch balk (“balk”), German Balken (“balk”), Italian balcone (“balcony”).

der

(billiards) The area of the table lying behind the line from which the cue ball is initially shot, and from which a ball in hand must be played.


cue

Variant of queue, from French queue (“tail”).

(sports, billiards, snooker, pool) A straight tapering stick used to hit the balls in various games.

կիյ

straight tapering rod used to impel the balls in games such as billiards, snooker, and pool


cue

en-verb

cue (third-person singular simple present cues, present participle cueing or cuing, simple past and past participle cued)

cues (present singular third-person)
cueing (participle present)
cuing (participle present)
cued (participle past)
cued (past)

(sports, billiards, snooker, pool) To take aim on the cue ball with the cue and hit it.


sink

sink (third-person singular simple present sinks, present participle sinking, simple past sank or (dialectal) sunk, past participle sunk or (archaic) sunken)

sinks (present singular third-person)
sinking (participle present)
sank (past)
sunk (dialectal past)
sunk (participle past)
sunken (archaic participle past)

From Middle English synken, from Old English sincan, from Proto-West Germanic *sinkwan, from Proto-Germanic *sinkwaną, from Proto-Indo-European *sengʷ- (“to fall, sink”).
Compare West Frisian sinke, Low German sinken, Dutch zinken, German sinken, Danish and Norwegian Bokmål synke, Swedish sjunka. In the causative sense, it replaced Old English senċan (“make sink”) from Proto-Germanic *sankwijaną.

der

My sister beats me at pool in public a second time. I claim some dignity back by potting two of my balls before Tammy sinks the black.

2008, Edward Keating, The Joy of Ex: A Novel:

(heading, physical) To move or be moved into something.

(transitive, snooker, pool, billiards, golf) To pot; hit a ball into a pocket or hole.


stun

en-verb

stun (third-person singular simple present stuns, present participle stunning, simple past and past participle stunned)

stuns (present singular third-person)
stunning (participle present)
stunned (participle past)
stunned (past)

From Middle English stunien, stonien, stounien, from Old English stunian (“to crash, make a loud sound, resound, roar, strike with a loud sound, dash, impinge, knock, confound, astonish, stupefy”), from Proto-West Germanic *stunōn, from Proto-Germanic *stunōną, *stunjaną (“to sound, crash, bang, groan”), from Proto-Germanic *stenaną (“to moan, shout”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)tona-, *(s)tena- (“to thunder, roar, groan”) (compare thunder). Cognate with Middle Low German stonen (“to groan”), Middle High German stunen, stunden (“to drive, push, knock, strike”), Swedish stöna (“to moan, groan”), Danish stønne (“to moan, groan”), Icelandic stynja (“to moan”). Related also to Dutch steunen (“to groan; support”), German stöhnen (“to groan, moan”), German staunen (“to be astonished, be amazed, marvel at”), Russian стонать (stonatʹ), стена́ть (stenátʹ, “to moan, groan”). See also Occitan estonar, Old French estoner, English astonish.

cog

(snooker, billiards) To hit the cue ball so that it slides without topspin or backspin (and with or without sidespin) and continues at a natural angle after contact with the object ball


stun

en-noun

stun (countable and uncountable, plural stuns)

Williams will need a lot of stun to avoid going in the middle pocket

(billiards, snooker, pool) The effect on the cue ball where the ball is hit without topspin, backspin or sidespin.


bumper

Dutch: bumper

Japanese: バンパー (banpā)

Korean: 범퍼 (beompeo)

Russian: ба́мпер (bámper)

(billiards) A side wall of a pool table.


crotch

Of disputed origin; two possibilities seem likely:
* From Middle English croche, variant of crucche (“crutch”); compare crook.
* From Middle English croche, variant of crouche (“cross, crozier”).

could eat the crotch out of a low flying duck

(billiards) In the three-ball carom game, a small space at each corner of the table.


ferrule

From Middle English verel, virel, virole (“ferrule; metal pivot on the end of an axle”), altered under the influence of Latin ferrum (“iron”), from Old French virole (“ferrule”), from Latin viriola (“little bracelet”), diminutive of viria (“bracelet worn by men”), from Gaulish, from Proto-Celtic *weiros (“crooked”) (compare Middle Irish fiar (“bent, crooked”), Welsh gŵyr, Breton gwar (“curved”)), from Proto-Indo-European *weyh₁ros (“threaded, turned, twisted”), from *weyh₁- (“to turn, twist, weave”).

refn

From the collection of the Auckland War Memorial Museum in Auckland, New Zealand.

kování

band or cap placed around a shaft to reinforce it or to prevent splitting

příruba

During a short break he clamped the tenon machine to the countertop; then he took a few cues that were in need of repair and began replacing their ferrules. […] By two-thirty, a dozen cues had new white ferrules and leather tips.

1984 August, Walter Tevis, chapter 6, in The Color of Money, New York, N.Y.: Warner Books, →ISBN; republished New York, N.Y.: Warner Books, October 1986, →ISBN, pages 150–151:

A band holding parts of an object together.

(billiards) The plastic band attaching the tip to the cue.

virolla

(billiards) plastic band attaching the tip to the cue


carom

en-noun

carom (countable and uncountable, plural caroms)

Probably derived from French carambole (the red ball in billiards).

(countable, cue sports, especially billiards) A shot in which the ball struck with the cue comes in contact with two or more balls on the table; a hitting of two or more balls with the player's ball.

carambola

shot in which the cue ball strikes two balls


8 ball

8 balls (plural)
eightball (alternative)
eight-ball (alternative)
eight ball (alternative)

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The 8 ball was buried behind the 10 and the 15.

(literally, billiards) The eighth numbered ball.


clearance

clearance (countable and uncountable, plural clearances)

(sports, billiards, snooker, pool) The act of potting all the remaining balls on a table at one visit.

разчистване

billiards: act of potting all the remaining balls on a table at one visit


cue ball

cue balls (plural)
cueball (alternative)

(snooker, pool, billiards) The white ball which, stricken by the cue, collides with the other balls to achieve the object of the particular game.


scratch

en-verb

scratch (third-person singular simple present scratches, present participle scratching, simple past and past participle scratched)

scratches (present singular third-person)
scratching (participle present)
scratched (participle past)
scratched (past)

From Middle English scracchen, of uncertain origin. Probably a blend of Middle English scratten (“to scratch”) and cracchen (“to scratch”). More at scrat and cratch.

scratch a liberal and you'll find a fascist

you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours

Embarrassingly, he scratched on the break, popping the cue completely off the table.

(billiards) To commit a foul in pool, as where the cue ball is put into a pocket or jumps off the table.

(billiards, dated, US) To score, not by skillful play but by some fortunate chance of the game.


scratch

en-noun

scratch (countable and uncountable, plural scratches)

A foul in pool, as where the cue ball is put into a pocket or jumps off the table.

(archaic, US, slang) A shot which scores by chance and not as intended by the player; a fluke.


cush

(colloquial, sports, billiards, snooker, pool) The cushion, the soft lip around the edge of the table that allows the balls to bounce cleanly.


in hand

(snooker, billiards, pool) Of the cue ball: not on the table; able to be positioned by the current player.


break off

en-verb

break off (third-person singular simple present breaks off, present participle breaking off, simple past broke off, past participle broken off)

breaks off (present singular third-person)
breaking off (participle present)
broke off (past)
broken off (participle past)

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From Middle English breke of (“break off, terminate”), a dissimilated form of earlier Middle English ofbreken. By surface analysis, break + off.

inh

Ted's opening line, when Steve broke off for the deciding frame, was, 'Last night we put our clocks back one hour. These two stars turned theirs back to April.'

2017, John Virgo, Say Goodnight, JV - My Autobiography, John Blake Publishing, →ISBN:

(ambitransitive, billiards, snooker) To play the first shot in a frame of snooker, billiards or pool.


clear up

en-verb

clear up (third-person singular simple present clears up, present participle clearing up, simple past and past participle cleared up)

clears up (present singular third-person)
clearing up (participle present)
cleared up (participle past)
cleared up (past)

(snooker, billiards, intransitive) To pot all of the remaining balls in a single turn.


trick shot

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(billiards) An unconventional shot of the balls to show off or pot an otherwise impossible ball.


cue up

cue up (third-person singular simple present cues up, present participle cuing up or cueing up, simple past and past participle cued up)

cues up (present singular third-person)
cuing up (participle present)
cueing up (participle present)
cued up (participle past)
cued up (past)

(sports, billiards, snooker, pool) To take aim on the cue ball with the cue in a game of snooker, or billiards, etc.


respot

respot (third-person singular simple present respots, present participle respotting, simple past and past participle respotted)

respots (present singular third-person)
respotting (participle present)
respotted (participle past)
respotted (past)

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(sports, billiards, snooker, pool) To replace a ball on its correct spot on a snooker, billiards or pool table.


screw back

screw back (third-person singular simple present screws back, present participle screwing back, simple past and past participle screwed back)

screws back (present singular third-person)
screwing back (participle present)
screwed back (participle past)
screwed back (past)

(sports, billiards, snooker, pool) To cue the cue ball in such a way as to impart backspin. On impact, the ball will follow a reverse trajectory according to the spin.


in baulk

(sports, billiards, snooker, pool) In the area behind the baulk line in cue sports.


check side

(sports, billiards, snooker, pool) A sidespin of the cue ball which makes it bounce off the cush, or off another ball, at a shallower angle than normal.


half-ball

From half- + ball, so called because the view from the cue ball is half eclipsing the object ball.

The shot needs to be slightly thicker than half-ball to get to the center pocket.

(sports, billiards, snooker, pool) Describes a shot where the cue ball and the object ball make contact at a natural 45º angle.


hanging ball

(sports, billiards, snooker, pool) A ball that is in the jaws of a pocket


billiard table

(sports, billiards, snooker) A heavy felt-covered table fitted with six pockets along the perimeter used in the games of pool, billiards or snooker.


object ball

(snooker, billiards) The ball which the cue ball is intended to hit.


bricole

From French bricole, from Late Latin briccola, bricola, of uncertain origin.

(billiards) A shot in which the cue ball is initially driven against the cushion.


score string

(billiards) A wire strung with beads and hung horizontally above or near the table which is used to keep score.

àbac

device used to keep the score in billiards


rack up

rack up (third-person singular simple present racks up, present participle racking up, simple past and past participle racked up)

racks up (present singular third-person)
racking up (participle present)
racked up (participle past)
racked up (past)

At the start of the game, the referee racks up the red balls.

If you rack up, I'll break.

(ambitransitive, snooker, billiards, cue sports) To arrange in a rack.


cheatable

en-adj

cheatable (comparative more cheatable, superlative most cheatable)

more cheatable (comparative)
most cheatable (superlative)

(billiards, snooker, of a pocket) Able to be potted at either edge rather than in the middle


crotched

crotched (comparative more crotched, superlative most crotched)

more crotched (comparative)
most crotched (superlative)

When so crotched, only three counts are allowed, unless one or both object balls are forced out of the crotch.

1909, John Huston Finley, “Billiards”, in Nelson's Perpetual Loose-leaf Encyclopaedia, volume 2, page 83B:

The object-balls shall be considered crotched whenever the centers of both lie within a 4 1/2 inch square at either corner of the table, and when so crotched, but three counts are allowed unless one or both object-balls be forced out of the crotch.

1911, William Brisbane Dick, The American Hoyle: Or, Gentleman's Hand-book of Games, page 463:

The balls are said to be crotched, a crotch being the term used to describe the inner corner of a table . It's a perfect situation for scoring caroms . You simply tap the cue ball into both crotched balls simultaneously, driving them deeper and deeper into the corner.

1979, George Sullivan, The Complete Beginner's Guide to Pool and Other Billiard Games, page 149:

(billiards) Lying within one of the crotches on the table.


safety call

(billiards) A type of called shot where a shooting player does not have to continue their turn after pocketing one or more of their balls.


hand bridge

(billiards) a player's front hand formed to position their cue while making a shot


screwback

(snooker, pool, billiards) The effect of putting backspin on the cue ball.


winning hazard

(English billiards) When one's cue ball strikes some other ball and causes that other ball to sink into a pocket. If the sunken ball is the red ball then one scores three points, but if the sunken ball is the other player's cue ball then one scores two points.


losing hazard

(English billiards) The situation where one's cue ball bounces off another ball and then sinks into a pocket. If the ball bounced off is the red ball, then three points are scored; but if it is the opponent's cue ball, then two points are scored.


pottable

(billiards, snooker, pool) Able to be potted.


break-off

break-offs (plural)
breakoff (alternative)

(billiards, snooker) The first shot in a game of snooker or other cue-game


one-pocket

(billiards) A pool game in which points are scored by potting balls into specific designated pockets.


rerack

en-verb

rerack (third-person singular simple present reracks, present participle reracking, simple past and past participle reracked)

reracks (present singular third-person)
reracking (participle present)
reracked (participle past)
reracked (past)

(transitive, billiards, snooker, pool) To rack (the balls) again, as when preparing for a new game.


push out

(billiards) In nine ball pool, an optional shot after a legal break shot where a player is allowed to hit any ball first, or not any, as well as not hit a rail, and the opponent can choose who shoots the next shot.


anchor shot

(billiards) A shot made with the object balls in an anchor space.


anchor space

(billiards) In the balk-line game, any of eight spaces, 7 × 3½ inches, lying along a cushion and bisected transversely by a balk line. Object balls in an anchor space are treated as in balk.


spot stroke

(billiards) The pocketing of the red ball in a top corner pocket from off its own spot so as to leave the cue ball in position for an easy winning hazard in either top corner pocket.


run of the ball

en-noun

run of the ball (plural runs of the ball)

runs of the ball (plural)
run of the balls (alternative)

(snooker, pool, billiards) A run of good luck; a situation where a player is able to make his or her desired shots without difficulty.


nomination game

nomination game (plural nomination games)

(billiards) A form of billiards in which player must name their shots in advance, with a penalty for failing to achieve them.


bank shot

(snooker, pool, billiards) A shot in which the player causes the cue ball or an object ball to rebound off a cushion.


spot-barred

a spot-barred game or tournament

(billiards) In which the spot stroke is forbidden to be played more than twice consecutively.


kaisa

(billiards) A variant of the game billiards played chiefly in Finland and Russia.


nursery cannon

See nurse (“to strike billiard balls gently”).

(billiards) A carom shot involving balls that are very close together.


play fine

en-verb

play fine (third-person singular simple present plays fine, present participle playing fine, simple past and past participle played fine)

plays fine (present singular third-person)
playing fine (participle present)
played fine (participle past)
played fine (past)

(billiards) To strike the object ball near the edge.


play full

play full (third-person singular simple present plays full, present participle playing full, simple past and past participle played full)

plays full (present singular third-person)
playing full (participle present)
played full (participle past)
played full (past)

(billiards) To strike the object ball nearer to its centre than its edge.


cheatability

(billiards, snooker) The extent to which a pocket is cheatable


cheat the pocket

cheat the pocket (third-person singular simple present cheats the pocket, present participle cheating the pocket, simple past and past participle cheated the pocket)

cheats the pocket (present singular third-person)
cheating the pocket (participle present)
cheated the pocket (participle past)
cheated the pocket (past)

(billiards, snooker) To pot a ball in the edge, rather than the middle, of a pocket.


chesney

(billiards, snooker) An indentation in the slate of a table that affects the path of a ball travelling over it


cotgrave

(billiards, snooker) A fluke in which a pot or snooker is obtained by accident


cuemaker

(pool, billiards, snooker) A manufacturer of cues


highrun

highruns (plural)
high run (alternative)
high-run (alternative)

(billiards, snooker) A series of successful shots that is lengthy for the player's level of skill


poolshark

(pool, billiards, snooker) A hustler who deliberately disrupts a game for his own advantage


stakehorse

(billiards, snooker) A person who bets (backs with a stake) on a player


stakehorse

stakehorse (third-person singular simple present stakehorses, present participle stakehorsing, simple past and past participle stakehorsed)

stakehorses (present singular third-person)
stakehorsing (participle present)
stakehorsed (participle past)
stakehorsed (past)

(billiards, snooker) To bet on the outcome of a game


tip tool

tip tools (plural)
tiptool (alternative)

(billiards, snooker) Any device used to maintain the tip on a cue


kiss out

kiss out (third-person singular simple present kisses out, present participle kissing out, simple past and past participle kissed out)

kisses out (present singular third-person)
kissing out (participle present)
kissed out (participle past)
kissed out (past)

(billiards) To err resulting in the interaction between the cue ball and another ball(s) causing the shot to miss.